Vertical take-off and landing (vtol) aircraft with aerodynamically lifting protective structure system and method

ABSTRACT

A method that includes takeoff of an aircraft assembly in a vertical orientation with a central axis X of the aircraft assembly perpendicular to the ground; rotating the aircraft assembly from the vertical orientation to a horizontal orientation where the central axis X is between −5° and 20° from true horizontal; and flying the aircraft assembly from a first location to a second location in the horizontal orientation with an aircraft of the aircraft assembly generating forward propulsion for forward flight and a wing body of the aircraft assembly generating aerodynamic lift for the aircraft assembly based on the forward flight in the horizontal orientation, the aerodynamic lift generated by the wing body supporting equal to or greater than 70% of the weight of the aircraft assembly.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application is a non-provisional of and claims the benefit of U.S. Provisional Application No. 63/293,805, filed Dec. 26, 2021, entitled “VERTICAL TAKE-OFF AND LANDING (VTOL) AIRCRAFT WITH AERODYNAMICALLY LIFTING PROTECTIVE STRUCTURE.” This application is hereby incorporated herein by reference in its entirety and for all purposes.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 depicts a top isometric view of an aircraft assembly of one embodiment.

FIG. 2 depicts a side isometric view of the aircraft assembly of FIG. 1 .

FIG. 3 depicts a bottom isometric view of an aircraft assembly of another embodiment.

FIG. 4 depicts a top view of the embodiment of FIG. 3 .

FIG. 5 depicts a top isometric view of the embodiment of FIGS. 3 and 4 .

FIG. 6 depicts a side view of the embodiment of FIGS. 3-5 .

FIG. 7 depicts an example embodiment of a fitting for coupling portions of a cage assembly.

FIG. 8 depicts a cross-section A of a cage assembly.

FIG. 9 a depicts an embodiment where a wing body comprises a membrane skin.

FIG. 9 b depicts an embodiment where a wing body has an airfoil cross-section.

FIG. 9 c depicts an embodiment where a wing body has a planar plate cross-section.

FIG. 10 illustrates an example of an aircraft assembly taking off in a vertical orientation, transitioning to a horizontal orientation for flight and then transitioning to a vertical orientation for landing.

It should be noted that the figures are not drawn to scale and that elements of similar structures or functions are generally represented by like reference numerals for illustrative purposes throughout the figures. It also should be noted that the figures are only intended to facilitate the description of the preferred embodiments. The figures do not illustrate every aspect of the described embodiments and do not limit the scope of the present disclosure.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

The invention generally relates to vertical takeoff and landing (VTOL) aircraft and other aircraft, such as drones, with protective cages. Some inspection drones can include protective cages so they can operate in close proximity to fixed objects under inspection and nearby structures without inflicting or incurring damage. Some drones for inspection of fixed objects have cages that are purely protective and do not provide any aerodynamic lift, and such cages can hurt rather than enhance flight efficiency. There is a need in the art to maximize, optimize, and improve the aerodynamic performance of drones with protective cages.

Various embodiments include a VTOL, hover-capable multirotor aircraft with a structure surrounding the rotors that acts as a protective cage and functions as an annular wing in forward flight. Such an aircraft in some examples can take off and land using the thrust of the rotors like a drone multirotor. Once airborne, the aircraft can pitch to a nearly-horizontal attitude and fly supported by the aerodynamic lift of the annular wing. The rotors can then propel the aircraft forward only, thus reducing the power required to fly as compared to flying like a rotorcraft being supported by motor/rotor thrust. In slow-speed rotor-borne flight, the annular wing can act to protect the rotors from contact with obstacles, thus allowing the aircraft to operate in very close proximity to fixed objects.

Various embodiments can provide a VTOL, hover-capable multirotor aircraft with a structure surrounding the rotors that acts as a protective cage and functions as an annular wing in forward flight. A multirotor aircraft, such as a multirotor drone, can provide powered lift, propulsion and control; and an annular wing structure can provide lift in forward flight and can protect the rotors from contact with obstacles when the aircraft is operating in close proximity to fixed objects or moving.

In various embodiments, a multirotor drone or unstaffed aerial vehicle (UAV) can be attached by struts to a surrounding cage/wing assembly. The multirotor UAV can be comprised of a UAV structure on which are mounted rotors driven by motors, and a sensor payload. The UAV, including rotors, can be entirely inside of the cage/wing in some examples, which can have the form of a cylinder or polygon in some embodiments. Tube or rod cage members connected by junctions can provide structural support of the cage, which can have an open top bumper assembly, an open bottom, and sides with a continuous skin or skins to form an annular wing. The wing skins may be transparent or translucent to allow the UAV's sensors to see through the wing (e.g., via visual spectrum light, light above or below such a spectrum, or the like).

The cage/wing can act to protect the rotors when operating close to objects, and thus the cage/wing structure in various embodiments can be resilient enough to withstand at least low-speed collisions with objects. The wing can provide lift and can improve efficiency in translating flight. The lift of the wing can support the weight of the aircraft, allowing the rotors to produce less thrust than if they were needed to support the aircraft's weight. The annular wing defined by a cage/wing can have a variety of forms (e.g., cylindrical, or a polygonal prism) and may have an airfoil cross-section, flat cross-section, or the like.

Turning to FIGS. 1 and 2 , an example embodiment of an aircraft system 100 is illustrated that includes an aircraft 110 that is coupled to and surrounded by a cage assembly 120. The cage assembly 120 comprises a cage 130 having top truss bars 132, a top ring 134, a bottom ring 136 and a plurality of sidebars 138. A wing body 160 can surround the sidebars 138 between the top and bottom rings 134, 136 and can define a cage cavity 140 that include an open top cavity end 142 and an open bottom cavity end 144. The aircraft 110 can be disposed within the cage cavity 140, between the top and bottom rings 134, 136, and coupled to the cage assembly 120 via a plurality of struts 150.

In various embodiments, the aircraft 110 can be a drone or UAV comprising an aircraft body 112 with a plurality of arms 114 extending from the body 112 with rotors 116 at terminal ends of the arms 114. The aircraft 110 can comprise one or more sensors 118 such as a camera, LIDAR, ultrasonic range sensor, microphone, accelerometer, GPS, gyroscopic sensor, compass, and the like. Such sensors 118 can be located on various locations on the aircraft 110 including grouped together as a sensor payload or disposed separately about the aircraft 110. In various embodiments, such sensors can be absent from the cage assembly 120, but in some embodiments, the cage assembly 120 can comprise various suitable sensors 118. For example, one or more cameras can be coupled to one or more of the truss bars 132. Also, in various embodiments, one or more sensors 118 can be coupled to the aircraft 110 within the cage cavity 140, but can be configured to have a line of sight above or below the wing body 160. For example, in some embodiments, a camera can be disposed at the end an elongated shaft of sufficient length that the camera has visibility over the top ring 130 and the wing body 160.

While various embodiments herein include a quadrotor aircraft 110, any suitable aircraft 110 can be used in various embodiments including drones or UAVs with any suitable number and type of propulsion systems, such as motors, engines, or the like. An aircraft 110 of various embodiments can be any suitable size and can be an unstaffed aerial vehicle (UAV), can be piloted, can be remotely piloted or can be fully or partially autonomous. For example, in some embodiments, the aircraft 110 can comprise a cockpit where one or more human users can operate the aircraft 110 or such a cockpit can be specifically absent in some embodiments.

Also, in various embodiments, the aircraft 110 can be removably coupled to the cage assembly 120 via one or more struts 150 or can be operable without the cage assembly 120 being present. However, in some embodiments, the aircraft 110 can be integrally coupled to the cage assembly 120 or the aircraft 110 can be inoperable without the cage assembly 120 being present. Also, while various examples herein include four struts 150, further embodiments can include any suitable number of struts 150 or other suitable elements that couple the body 112 of the aircraft 110 to the cage assembly 120.

In various embodiments, the cage assembly 120 can include a hollow octagonal prism defined by octagonal top and bottom rings 134, 136 of the same size and shape with eight sidebars 138 of the same length extending in parallel between the top and bottom rings 134, 136 and the wing body 160 surrounding the sidebars 138 to define the open top and bottom cavity ends 142, 144 of the cage cavity 140. The cage assembly 120 can have eight planes of symmetry about a central axis X of the aircraft assembly 100.

However, in further embodiments, the cage assembly can include various suitable hollow shapes such a circular or oval cylinder; triangular prism, rectangular prism, square prism, pentagonal prism, hexagonal prism, heptagonal prism, octagonal prism, nonagonal prism, decagonal prism, and the like. Also, while various embodiments include parallel sidewalls of cage assembly 120 defined by the wing body 160, some embodiments can include tapered sidewalls based on the diameters of the top and bottom rings 134, 136 being different sizes. Also, in some embodiments, the sidewalls can be concave, convex or other suitable shape with the top and bottom rings 134, 136 being the same or different sizes.

In some embodiments, the cage assembly 120 can be large (e.g., with a maximum diameter of 50 m, 40 m, 30 m, 20 m, or the like or a range between such values) or can be smaller (e.g., with a maximum diameter of 1 ft, 2 ft, 3 ft, 4 ft, 5 ft, 6 ft, 7 ft, 8 ft, 9 ft, 10 ft, 12 ft, 15 ft, 20 ft, 25 ft, 30 ft, 35 ft, 40 ft, 45 ft, 50 ft, 55 ft, or the like or a range between such values). One preferred embodiment has a cage assembly 120 with a diameter of 14 inches.

As shown in the examples of FIGS. 1 and 2 , the truss bars 132 can linearly extend from the top ring 134 to a peak that is coincident with a central axis X of the cage assembly 120. In various embodiments, the cage 130 can comprise four truss bars 132 that respectively extend from every other corner of the octagonal top ring 134. However, further embodiments can include any suitable number of truss bars 132 including 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 12, 16, 24, 50, 100, or the like. In some embodiments, truss bars can be absent. Such truss bars 132 can be linear in various embodiments or can be concave, convex or other suitable shape. For example, as shown in the example embodiment of FIGS. 3-6 , the truss bars 132 can initially extend upward from the top ring 134 parallel or coincident with a sidebar 138 and then extend diagonally to a peak that is coincident with a central axis X of the cage assembly 120. The truss bars 132 can be any suitable shape including cylindrical bars, rods or tubes, or the like. Also, in various embodiments, other suitable alternative or additional structures can extend from the top ring 134 such as a mesh (e.g., chicken wire) or the like.

In various embodiments, the top ring 134 and/or bottom ring 136 can comprise a plurality of bars, rods or tubes that are joined together in various ways, including via a fitting 700 (see e.g., FIG. 7 ), a weld, bolt, screw, or the like. In some embodiments, the top ring 134 and/or bottom ring 136 can be a single unitary structure instead of a plurality of separate elements coupled together. The top ring 134 and bottom ring 136 can be joined in various suitable ways, including via a plurality of sidebars 138 (e.g., bars, rods or tubes) or other suitable structures. Couplings between such elements and the top ring 134 and bottom ring 136 can include a fitting 700 (see e.g., FIG. 7 ), a weld, bolt, screw, or the like. Truss bars 132 can similarly be coupled to each other and to the top ring 134 in various suitable ways such as a fitting 700 (see e.g., FIG. 7 ), a weld, bolt, screw, or the like. Such fittings 700 can be fabricated in some examples with polymer material (e.g., Abs, PETG, Nylon, or the like) via fabrication methods such as 3D printing, injection molding, composite lay-up or machining or the like. The fitting may also be fabricated of cast or machined metal in some embodiments (e.g., aluminum).

In various embodiments, the wing body 160 can include various suitable materials, structures, profiles, shapes, or the like. For example, FIG. 8 illustrates a cross-section A of the wing body 160 and portions of the top and bottom rings 134, 136, with FIGS. 9 a, 9 b and 9 c illustrating different embodiments of the cross-section A of the wing body 160. For example, FIG. 9 a illustrates an embodiment where the wing body 160 comprises a membrane skin; FIG. 9 b illustrates an embodiment where the wing body 160 has an airfoil cross-section; and FIG. 9 c illustrates an embodiment where the wing body 160 has a planar plate cross-section.

In some embodiments, rods, tubes or bars of the top and bottom rings 134, 136 are connected by a flexible thin membrane skin having a thickness of 5-10 millimeters; however, further embodiments can have a membrane skin of any suitable thickness. Such a membrane skin can comprise various suitable materials such as a plastic film (e.g., mylar, vinyl or polyethylene), woven fabric, or the like. In various embodiments, such a membrane skin can be impervious to air passing through the membrane skin, can resist air passing through the membrane skin, or the like. Such an air-impact can be a based on an inherent property of such a material or such a material can be treated to generate such a property.

In some embodiments, such as shown in FIG. 9 b , structural elements of a cage assembly 120 (e.g., top and bottom rings 134, 136) are connected by a wing body 160 having an airfoil profile. In some embodiments, such an airfoil wing body 160 can comprise a double skin exterior with ribs, a foam filling, or the like. In various embodiments, the leading edge of the airfoil wing body 160 can be disposed at the top ring 134 with the trailing edge of the airfoil disposed at the bottom ring 136 such that flight of the aircraft assembly 100 with the top ring 134 pointed forward generates lift for the aircraft assembly 100 based on the airfoil cross-section of wing body 160. In various embodiments, an aerodynamic surface of a wing body 160 can be fabricated of molded or cut-to-shape foam or plastic material to form a desired airfoil shape. In some embodiments, the maximum thickness of the airfoil can be 10%-15% of the chord length of the airfoil.

In some embodiments, such as shown in FIG. 9 c , structural elements of a cage assembly 120 (e.g., top and bottom rings 134, 136) are connected by a planar wing body 160. In various examples, such a planar wing body 160 can comprise a rigid, foam-filled flat plate defined by external planar skin faces that sandwich a lightweight internal core such as foam, air or the like. In some embodiments, the width of such a planar wing body 160 can be the same size as, greater than or smaller than the width of the top and/or bottom rings 134, 136.

In some embodiments, the wing body 160 can be a rigid structural element of the cage assembly 120. In some such embodiments, elements such as sidebars 138, the top ring 134 and/or bottom ring 136 can be absent or can be defined by a portion of the wing body 160. For example, a top ring 134 can be defined by a leading edge of the wing body 160 and a bottom ring can be defined by a trailing edge of the wing body 160.

The aircraft assembly 100 can be configured to carry various payloads. For example, in some embodiments, a payload body can be attached to the cage assembly 120 by struts 150 and/or additional propulsive elements for translating flight can be added. The motor configuration of an aircraft 110 or other propulsion element can be either tractor or pusher, and the motors of such an aircraft 110 or propulsion element may be any suitable type, such as an internal combustion engine (“ICE”), electric or the like. Ducted fans could be used instead of or in addition to or as an alternative to propellers in some embodiments. In various examples, batteries or fuel tanks can be mounted to the cage assembly 120 (e.g., within the cage cavity 140, external to the cage cavity 140, or the like).

The aircraft assembly 100 and components thereof or utilized in the various embodiments of the aircraft assembly 100 may be constructed using any suitable method and a variety of suitable materials. The cage 130 and wing body 160 may be constructed using any suitable method and a variety of suitable materials. Some or all of the cage 130 may be fabricated of pre-cured composite (e.g., carbon fiber, fiberglass or other fiber) rods or tubes cut to proper length. Other materials, including aluminum alloy tubing or wood dowels may also be used to fabricate some or all of the cage 130. The cage 130 in some embodiments can be fabricated of complex molded plastic parts that form some or all of the cage 130.

In various embodiments, the aircraft assembly 100 takes off and lands vertically under the thrust of rotors 116 of an aircraft 110 of the aircraft assembly 100, but can transition into a flight orientation by pitching over horizontally for wing-borne flight supported by lift generated by the wing body 160 (e.g., having an airfoil configuration). The cage assembly 130 can protect the rotors 116 from contacting obstacles, which can allow the aircraft assembly 100 to safely fly either rotor-borne and/or wing-borne in close proximity to fixed objects (e.g., walls, posts, fences, and the like) or in close proximity to moving objects (e.g., other aircraft assemblies 100, other aircraft 110, vehicles, birds, people, or the like). For example, the cage assembly 130 can generate lift and can also be strong enough to withstand bumping or crashing into objects such that the cage assembly 130 does not collapse and contact one or more of the rotors 116 to cause failure of the aircraft (e.g., an impact force of at least 50 kN, 100 kN, 500 kN, 1000 kN, 2000 kN, 3000 kN or the like).

FIG. 10 illustrates an example of an aircraft assembly 100 taking off in a vertical orientation (e.g., where main axis X of the aircraft assembly 100 is perpendicular to the ground or parallel to gravity), transitioning to a horizontal orientation for flight, and then transitioning to a vertical orientation for landing. As shown in this example, the aircraft assembly 100 can take off in a vertical orientation with the truss bars 132 and top ring 134 oriented upward and the bottom ring 136 oriented downward. Propulsive upward force for takeoff can be generated by the rotors 116 of the aircraft 110, and in various embodiments, exclusively by the rotors 116 of the aircraft 110.

When airborne, the aircraft assembly 100 can rotate to a horizontal configuration for flight with the truss bars 132 and top ring 134 oriented forward and being the leading edge of flight, with the bottom ring 136 being the trailing edge during flight. The aircraft assembly 100 can be configured to fly with an angle of attack at various suitable horizontal angles relative to true horizontal (e.g., where main axis X of the aircraft assembly 100 is parallel to the ground or perpendicular to gravity) such as −20°, −15°, −10°, −9°, −8°, −7°, −6°, −5°, −4°, −3°, −2°, −1°, 0°, 1°, 2°, 3°, 4°, 5°, 6°, 7°, 8°, 9°, 10°, 5°, 20° or the like, or a range between such values. In one preferred embodiment, the angle of attack is between 5° and 10°.

In various embodiments, the rotors 116 of the aircraft 110 generate forward propulsion for forward flight of the aircraft assembly 100 with the wing body 160 generating aerodynamic lift for the aircraft assembly 100 based on forward flight in the horizontal flight orientation. The aerodynamic lift generated by the wing body 160 can support the weight of the aircraft assembly 100 and can thereby reduce power required to fly in the horizontal configuration compared to power that would be required for forward flight of the aircraft assembly 100 in the vertical orientation. For example, in various embodiments, aerodynamic lift generated by the wing body 160 can support various amounts of the weight of the aircraft assembly 100 including at least 60%, 70%, 80%, 85%, 90%, 95%, 100%, 110%, 120%, 130% or the like, or a range between such example values.

For landing, the aircraft assembly 100 can rotate from the horizontal configuration to a vertical orientation with the truss bars 132 and top ring 134 oriented upward and the bottom ring 136 oriented downward (where main axis X of the aircraft assembly 100 is perpendicular to the ground or parallel to gravity). The aircraft assembly 100 can land on the ground or other surface via the bottom ring 136, landing gear on the bottom ring 136, or the like. Propulsive upward force for landing can be generated by the rotors 116 of the aircraft 110, and in various embodiments, exclusively by the rotors 116 of the aircraft 110.

The described embodiments are susceptible to various modifications and alternative forms, and specific examples thereof have been shown by way of example in the drawings and are herein described in detail. It should be understood, however, that the described embodiments are not to be limited to the particular forms or methods disclosed, but to the contrary, the present disclosure is to cover all modifications, equivalents, and alternatives. Additionally, elements of a given embodiment should not be construed to be applicable to only that example embodiment and therefore elements of one example embodiment can be applicable to other embodiments. Additionally, elements that are specifically shown in example embodiments should be construed to cover embodiments that comprise, consist essentially of, or consist of such elements, or such elements can be explicitly absent from further embodiments. Accordingly, the recitation of an element being present in one example should be construed to support some embodiments where such an element is explicitly absent. 

What is claimed is:
 1. A method of operating an aircraft assembly, the method comprising: takeoff of an aircraft assembly in a vertical orientation with a central axis X of the aircraft assembly perpendicular to the ground, the aircraft assembly comprising: a cage assembly shaped as a hollow octagonal prism with the central axis X, the cage assembly including: a top ring, a bottom ring, a plurality of sidebars extending in parallel to each other between and coupling the top ring and the bottom ring, and a plurality of truss bars coupled to the top ring that extend diagonally to a peak that is coincident with the central axis X, a wing body coupled to and surrounding the sidebars between the top ring and bottom ring, the wing body defining a cage cavity having an open top cavity end and an open bottom cavity end, and an aircraft disposed within the cage cavity between the top ring and the bottom ring, the aircraft coupled to a set of the sidebars of the cage assembly via a plurality of struts, the aircraft comprising an aircraft body with a plurality of arms extending from the aircraft body with rotors at terminal ends of the arms, the aircraft further comprising a plurality of sensors and a computing device having a processor and memory storing executable instructions, the rotors generating upward lift for the aircraft assembly during takeoff of the aircraft assembly in the vertical orientation; after the takeoff of the aircraft assembly in the vertical orientation, rotating the aircraft assembly from the vertical orientation to a horizontal flight orientation where the central axis X is between 5° and 10° from true horizontal; flying the aircraft assembly from a first location to a second location in the horizontal flight orientation with the truss bars and top ring oriented forward and being a leading edge during forward flight and with the bottom ring being a trailing edge during forward flight, the rotors of the aircraft generating forward propulsion for the forward flight and the wing body generating aerodynamic lift for the aircraft assembly based on forward flight in the horizontal flight orientation, the aerodynamic lift generated by the wing body supporting equal to or greater than 90% of the weight of the aircraft assembly and reducing power required to fly in the horizontal flight orientation compared to forward flight of the aircraft assembly in the vertical orientation; at the second location, rotating the aircraft assembly from the horizontal flight orientation to the vertical orientation; and landing the aircraft assembly on the ground in the vertical orientation at the second location.
 2. The method of claim 1, wherein the top ring and the bottom ring are defined by a plurality of rods of the same length that are coupled by respective fittings to define respective regular octagonal rings.
 3. The method of claim 1, wherein the wing body has an airfoil profile, with a leading edge of the airfoil profile at the top ring and with a trailing edge of the airfoil profile at the bottom ring, wherein the airfoil profile generates the aerodynamic lift of the wing body to cause the wing body supporting equal to or greater than 90% of the weight of the aircraft assembly.
 4. The method of claim 1, wherein the plurality of sensors includes a camera, with a view of the camera directed at an internal face of the wing body, and wherein the wing body is transparent so that the camera is able to observe through the wing body and outside of the cage cavity.
 5. A method of operating an aircraft assembly, the method comprising: takeoff of an aircraft assembly in a vertical orientation with a central axis X of the aircraft assembly perpendicular to the ground, the aircraft assembly comprising: a cage assembly including: a top ring, a bottom ring, and a plurality of sidebars extending in parallel to each other between and coupling the top ring and the bottom ring, a wing body coupled to and surrounding the sidebars between the top ring and bottom ring, the wing body defining a cage cavity having an open top cavity end and an open bottom cavity end, and an aircraft disposed within the cage cavity between the top ring and the bottom ring, the aircraft coupled to a set of the sidebars of the cage assembly via a plurality of struts, the aircraft generating upward lift for the aircraft assembly during takeoff of the aircraft assembly in the vertical orientation; after the takeoff of the aircraft assembly in the vertical orientation, rotating the aircraft assembly from the vertical orientation to a horizontal flight orientation where the central axis X is between 0° and 15° from true horizontal; flying the aircraft assembly from a first location to a second location in the horizontal flight orientation with the top ring oriented forward and being a leading edge during forward flight and with the bottom ring being a trailing edge during forward flight, the aircraft generating forward propulsion for the forward flight and the wing body generating aerodynamic lift for the aircraft assembly based on forward flight in the horizontal flight orientation, the aerodynamic lift generated by the wing body supporting equal to or greater than 80% of the weight of the aircraft assembly; at the second location, rotating the aircraft assembly from the horizontal flight orientation to the vertical orientation; and landing the aircraft assembly on the ground in the vertical orientation at the second location.
 6. The method of claim 5, wherein the cage assembly shaped as a hollow octagonal prism with the central axis X being a central axis for the hollow octagonal prism.
 7. The method of claim 5, wherein the cage assembly further comprises a plurality of truss bars coupled to the top ring that extend diagonally to a peak that is coincident with the central axis X.
 8. The method of claim 5, wherein aircraft comprises: an aircraft body, a plurality of rotors that generate upward lift for the aircraft assembly during takeoff of the aircraft assembly in the vertical orientation and that generate forward propulsion of the aircraft assembly in the horizontal flight orientation, a plurality of sensors, and a computing device having a processor and memory storing executable instructions.
 9. The method of claim 5, wherein the aerodynamic lift generated by the wing body reduces power required to fly in the horizontal flight orientation compared to forward flight of the aircraft assembly in the vertical orientation.
 10. A method of operating an aircraft assembly, the method comprising: takeoff of an aircraft assembly in a vertical orientation with a central axis X of the aircraft assembly perpendicular to the ground, the aircraft assembly comprising: a wing body defining a cavity having an open top cavity end and an open bottom cavity end, and an aircraft disposed within the cavity between the open top cavity end and the open bottom cavity end, the aircraft generating upward lift for the aircraft assembly during takeoff of the aircraft assembly in the vertical orientation; after the takeoff of the aircraft assembly in the vertical orientation, rotating the aircraft assembly from the vertical orientation to a horizontal orientation where the central axis X is between −5° and 20° from true horizontal; and flying the aircraft assembly from a first location to a second location in the horizontal orientation, the aircraft generating forward propulsion for forward flight and the wing body generating aerodynamic lift for the aircraft assembly based on the forward flight in the horizontal orientation, the aerodynamic lift generated by the wing body supporting equal to or greater than 70% of the weight of the aircraft assembly.
 11. The method of claim 10, wherein the aircraft assembly further comprises a cage assembly that includes: a top ring, and a bottom ring.
 12. The method of claim 11, wherein the cage assembly further comprises a plurality of sidebars between and coupling the top ring and the bottom ring.
 13. The method of claim 11, wherein the aircraft is coupled to the cage assembly via a plurality of struts.
 14. The method of claim 11, wherein the top ring is oriented forward and is a leading edge during forward flight in the horizontal orientation and with the bottom ring being a trailing edge during forward flight in the horizontal orientation.
 15. The method of claim 11, wherein the cage assembly further comprises a plurality of truss bars that extend diagonally to a peak that is coincident with the central axis X.
 16. The method of claim 10, further comprising at the second location, rotating the aircraft assembly from the horizontal orientation to the vertical orientation; and landing the aircraft assembly in the vertical orientation at the second location.
 17. The method of claim 10, wherein the wing body is shaped as a hollow polygonal prism with the central axis X being a central axis for the hollow polygonal prism.
 18. The method of claim 10, wherein aircraft comprises: an aircraft body, and one or more rotors that generate upward lift for the aircraft assembly during takeoff of the aircraft assembly in the vertical orientation and that generate forward propulsion of the aircraft assembly in the horizontal orientation.
 19. The method of claim 10, wherein the aerodynamic lift generated by the wing body reduces power required to fly in the horizontal orientation compared to forward flight of the aircraft assembly in the vertical orientation.
 20. The method of claim 10, wherein the wing body has an airfoil profile and wherein the airfoil profile generates the aerodynamic lift of the wing body to cause the wing body supporting equal to or greater than 70% of the weight of the aircraft assembly. 